From Robert De Niro to Laurence Olivier, Jack Nicholson to Humphrey Bogart, Al Pacino to James Stewart, there have been many debates about who is the greatest actor of all time. Despite all of the prestigious and brilliant actors listed above, there is one name which seems to have eclipsed all others. Marlon Brando is quite possibly the most influential actor of the 20th century, and perhaps the greatest actor to ever live. His methods revolutionized the way actors embody roles, and his shattering performances have stayed with everyone who has ever seen one his movies. Is he the greatest actor ever? Maybe, maybe not. It is without a doubt that Marlon Brando has had an incredible impact on the film industry, and he played key parts in creating some of the best films of all time.

Traces of Marlon Brando can be seen in almost every promising actor of today. From the paparazzi-shy activist Sean Penn to Heath Ledger’s traumatic method to become the Joker, there are still traces of Brando lingering in Hollywood. His ‘tortured artist’ image has influenced countless young actors, many of whom have gone on to become stars. Brando’s commitment to portraying human activity as realistically as possible and his sheer devotion to his roles are awe-inspiring. In my opinion, Marlon Brando is the greatest actor to have graced the silver screen ever.

Of course, this may change in time. Perhaps one of the younger actors of today will go on to outperform Marlon Brando in their own fashion. Before Marlon Brando many would argue that no one would ever surpass Laurence Olivier. The same thing happens in the world of sport. Until the late ‘80s no hockey fans could have ever imagined someone like Wayne Gretzky coming along and surpassing all other players in terms of goals scored per season as well as in total NHL goals. For this reason, I say that Brando is the greatest actor to have ever lived “so far”, as you never know what the future holds.

By 1944, when Marlon Brando was only 20 years old, he was named Broadway’s most promising actor. He gained larger Broadway success a couple years later when he starred as Stanley Kowalski in Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire. Brando’s appearance in the film adaptation of Williams’ play brought the actor mainstream Hollywood success, an addition to giving him a position as one of the most talked about new actors around. His performance as Stanley Kowalski was so polarizing in the way it encapsulated some many emotions. He lived out the part of Stanley on screen, showing that he had emotional depth behind his tough exterior. The one scene in which he cries “STELLA!!!” is so powerful that everyone who has seen it will likely never forget the image of Marlon Brando in his torn white shirt screaming from the street. A Streetcar Named Desire also earned Brando the first of his seven Best Actor nominations.

Marlon Brando went on to star in such films as Viva Zapata!, Julius Caesar, and The Wild One. The first two of these earning him his second and third Academy Award nominations respectively. His performance as Mark Anthony in Julius Caesar displayed his versatility and his ability to play Thespian characters just as well as he could play the average working class man like he does in many other films. The Wild One established Brando as a cultural icon, among with Elvis Presley and James Dean, his role in this movie inspired everything from imitators of his acting style to his haircut. Then, in 1954, Marlon Brando starred in On the Waterfront. A Best Picture winner, Brando received his first Oscar statuette for his performance as Terry Malloy. The scene in which he gives his “I coulda’ been a contender” monologue is not only one of Brando’s most memorable scenes, but also was partially improvised by Marlon Brando at the time. In the same year Brando appeared as Napoleon in Désiréa, and the next year he starred as Sky Masterson in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls. Later into the ‘50s, Marlon Brando took on the role of a United States Air Force officer in Sayonara, and a Nazi officer in The Young Lions. These numerous films developed Brando as a leading man and further showed his diversity in character.

In 1972, Marlon Brando appeared in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather. Heralded as one of the greatest films of all time by many critics, The Godfather was an artistic achievement and a profound story of crime in 1940s-50s New York. A sweeping epic of a film, Marlon Brando was essential to the magic of the movie, his role as Don Corleone will forever be remembered as one the greatest performance to grace audiences. Winning his second Oscar for The Godfather, Brando famously declined the award and instead had an American Indian woman read Brando’s justification for the decline of such a prestigious award.

Marlon Brando went on to have roles in films like Last Tango in Paris, The Missouri Breaks, and Superman. Out of these, his role in Last Tango in Paris seems to have stayed with critics the most. An Italian romantic drama, the movie was criticized for its raw portrayal of sexual violence and emotional turmoil. Many of Brando’s roles have been criticized for a large variety of reasons, and his films were often so different that they were hugely controversial upon release.

Of course, one of Marlon Brando’s most controversial roles was in Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now. The 1979 Vietnam film has been criticized on the grounds that it portrayed a live animal slaughter, that it cost far too much to make and that the actors were all out of line and some were even injured. Regardless of much of the criticism, Apocalypse Now is still remembered as one of the greatest films of the 1900s. Marlon Brando again played a vital role as Col. Walter E. Kurtz. Notoriously arriving on set overweight and unprepared, his harrowing performance still haunted viewers and commanded every scene he was present in.

In spite of the criticism against Brando, there is no argument as to how vast an influence he had on acting. Few actors can say they haven’t thought about Marlon Brando when approaching a role. His method style of learning characters is internationally respected, and Brando’s name is one known in households the world over. His image of a paparazzi-shy artist is repeated by many young stars and his talent for realistic performances is renowned. With multiple award winning performances over a range of genres and films, Marlon Brando is without a doubt among the most elite of actors to have passed through Hollywood, and arguably the greatest actor to have ever lived.

the greatest actor. Ever! There is not gonna be another one like him! Happy I lived to see and enjoy his amazing talen!

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About Me

Hi! My name is Michael and I love everything about movies. This blog will be a place where every once in a while I'll post my thoughts on films, directors, actors or other aspects of the film industry.